Of Reverie and Regard
by VivaGrazia
Summary: Skye realizes just how important dads truly are.


"Hello, and how can we help you today?"

"I have an appointment with Mr. Hudson. Should be at 3:00."

"Ok… I see that right here! Miss Johnson?

"That's me."

"You can have a seat while you wait, he'll be with you in a few moments."

"Alright, thank you."

Skye beamed at the receptionist, fidgeting with her skirt as she went to sit. The glasses that sat on her face felt heavy. She wasn't used to these things.

 _"_ _You sure are moving a lot,"_ Coulson acknowledged into her ear.

She held in any replies, not wanting to be muttering to herself for the woman at the desk to see. Or any security footage. But if she could say something, it would be about how she was not a fan of pencil thin skirts or giant spy glasses that took up majority of her vision.

 _"_ _Maybe, she uh, has to use the restroom?"_ suggested Fitz.

Oh, lord.

 _"_ _She probably just isn't used to the outfit."_

Good job Coulson.

 _"_ _But if you do have to use the loo Skye, it wouldn't be out of the ordinary to go!"_

 _"_ _Fitz, I'm pretty sure she took care of that…"_

 _"_ _It's a stressful situation!"_

" _Eheeeeem,"_ Skye loudly coughed. The secretary's head perked up at the noise, but it also effectively ended the chatting from the chatter-brains within a second.

"You all right there, hun?" asked the receptionist.

"Oh, fine." Skye waved her off. "Allergies."

She smiled. "The flowers have been getting to me lately as well."

"Actually, I think it's more the _pests_ that are bothering me," Skye said pointedly.

 _"_ _She's talking about us,"_ said Coulson.

 _"_ _Really? Maybe the bathroom wasn't it then…"_

Skye was in the midst of rolling her eyes, _very_ much so wishing those two could see her face instead of just whatever she was looking at, when the office door in front of her opened.

"Miss Johnson?" called out a man. With broad shoulders and nice green eyes, he was more attractive than Skye pictured an evil corporate mind to be. Even with the salt and pepper hair.

"Oh sir!" hurried the receptionist. "I would have sent her in…"

"It's fine, it's fine. I needed to stretch my legs. Aria's been… a handful."

 _"_ _Fitz?"_

 _"_ _Name check on Aria, coming up."_

The receptionist smiled warmly. "I see. I could keep her out here, perhaps…"

"No no," he said, holding out a hand in a stopping gesture. "My wife said I have to spend the day with her. And even if I convinced Aria not to say anything, Karen would just… know. I'm certain of it. Come in, Miss Johnson."

Skye started at the abrupt turn of conversation towards her, but she didn't show it outwardly, her heals clicking across the beautifully tiled floor moments later.

"Thank you," Skye said curtly, heading into the office. The quite _massive_ office, she observed the moment she stepped foot inside.

Maybe it was the twenty-foot long window, the fish-tank beneath the glass conference table that covered half the room, or the red leather couches.

But if Skye had any hunch this guy wasn't a super villain before, the vibe just screamed it now. They were 99.9% sure this was their guy, but the tiny fraction of a percentage had Skye curious if they'd been wrong. Though of course, that's why she was there. To bug the computer and get the information they needed. If it came up with nothing, he was harmless and her program wouldn't grab any data. No harm, no foul.

Unless her bug couldn't hack it. Then she'd have to do things the field agent way. Or to be more exact, the _specialist_ way.

Precisely why Skye was the perfect woman for the mission.

What she _didn't_ count on was the one thing in the room that actually did not shout 'evildoer' at the top of its lungs.

A girl sat on the couch. Aria, Skye surmised.

The .01 percent.

 _"_ _Aria Hudson is his daughter,"_ Fitz explained, though Skye could have guessed as much. _"Fifteen, freshman at California High."_

That's the part that threw her a bit.

She was expecting a kid, if this was like, bring your daughter to work day. But a teenager? A teenager with dark hair streaked with pink and purple highlights, black nail polish, chewing gum, phone out… she was like a walking statistic.

Or a throwback to a young Skye…

Either way, it was an obstacle. Another person to avoid while Skye got the flash drive into Hudson's computers.

And if she had to do things the _hard_ way… well, that would be incredibly difficult with Aria present. Skye would sooner have her leave first.

Mr. Hudson smiled broadly at Skye, actually unnerving her when the attention was most likely in attempt to make her feel welcome. It was all too easy to see passed him. "Miss Johnson, this is my daughter Aria. She'll be sitting in on our little meeting, learning a bit about the business."

"So nice to meet you." Skye extended a hand.

The teen looked as though Skye was trying to hand her the chicken pox. She appraised Skye with disgust, then found herself immersed once again on her mobile.

"I think you mean kissing mom's ass, _dad,_ " Aria bit out, barely looking up from her phone.

Skye's mouth hung slightly ajar at that response.

"Well… right. Yes. Let's get down to it. Please, sit."

Skye retracted her hand awkwardly from the young lady and took a seat at the fish tank table. _Seriously, are you_ trying _to tell us you're stealing money?_

Fitz began muttering in her ear and Skye tuned in to listen, in case it was important.

It wasn't.

 _"_ _Maybe… Well, I was thinking of getting a dog but perhaps one of those tables would be easier to manage back at base."_

 _"_ _Fitz, focus."_

 _"_ _It wouldn't be much upkeep though!"_

 _"_ _Fitz…"_

 _"_ _Sorry sir."_

Skye almost chuckled.

"You say you're from a construction company in… Ohio, Miss Johnson?"

Skye smiled sweetly and batted her lashes. But really, could he even see her behind these lenses? "Please, call me Daisy. And yes, the Ohio Department of Transportation. It's actually run by the state."

"Construction workers are young girls now, eh? You could almost be Aria's age."

His daughter scoffed at that.

"I'm actually just a representative, so I don't work in the field," Skye informed him lightly. "But it is the age of feminism."

"True, and I'm all for it. Would love to have my girl doing whatever she'd like."

Now she snorted. "Dad. Just do your stupid meeting thing. Stop bringing me into this like you care just because I'm in front of you for once…"

"Aria, that's not-"

Hudson was interrupted by a shrill beeping. His intercom.

 _"_ _Nice timing, Fitz."_

 _"_ _Thank you, sir!"_

He pressed a finger to the receiver. "Yes?"

"Sir, I have an urgent call for you to take. Immediately."

"Be right there," he said, and turned to Skye. "I'll just be a moment."

"Not a problem," Skye said, nudging her glasses up her nose for the umpteenth time.

Skye watched the man leave, her eyes trailing from the teenager on the phone to the desk behind her, with what could possibly classify as a supercomputer sitting on it.

 _"_ _You have around three minutes, Skye," Fitz told her._

Peachy.

Skye walked lazily towards the desk, her finger trailing casually along the couch. She spun and turned as though appraising the room, even if she wasn't entirely sure why she was bothering to put on a show. The girl wasn't taking her sights off that phone.

Skye walked nonchalantly towards the computer.

"You better not be some kind of spy."

Skye stilled. Aria had said it with such non-existent emotion, without looking up from her phone, for a moment it ran through Skye's head that she was some kind of robot or psychic. Not ridiculous with her current line of work, but highly unlikely.

Still, it was a little unsettling.

"I'm not a… spy," Skye said, puzzled.

"That's good, for you. Cause when dad catches corporate spies, I never hear about them again. Probably homeless now. Not that I care, I guess."

The girl still wasn't looking at her, and Skye was taken a little off-guard. She chuckled. "It's just, this place is pretty awesome, right?"

Nose. Still in phone.

Skye knelt surreptitiously, placing the flash drive in as she scoffed, feigning fascination. "I mean, I couldn't afford this with my salary in a thousand years!"

Aria took to texting, her fingers now thumbing the buttons even as she spoke. "Well. Aren't you just pathetic, then."

 _"_ _Whoa!"_

 _"_ _Ouch,"_ muttered Coulson.

Skye grumbled, more at the peanut gallery than the girl.

"Sorry about that!" said Hudson, bursting back in. "I have no idea what that was; claiming a pipe burst on one of my properties… Now, where were we?"

Skye coughed to regain focus. "Oh. Uh… The funds. Taxes, um…" Her mind was frantically searching for her cover information. This kid had really rattled her. "The tax money isn't seeming to make it all the way to ODOT as it should. And when we looked into the discrepancies, we traced them back here. Hudson Corp."

Aria cocked an eyebrow.

Hudson's smile never wavered, but Skye could swear she saw a bead of sweat trail down his forehead.

"I have no idea what you possibly mean."

 _"_ _Skye,"_ said Fitz. _"The firewalls are too much for your program."_

Shit.

Coulson sighed. _"Time for plan B. But that much security proves one thing: he_ is _one-hundred percent in on this."_

Skye groaned, prompting confused looks and cocked heads from father and daughter. "I worked really hard on that virus. Like, an hour, at least."

"What?"

Skye whipped out her gun. "Hands on your head and get on your knees."

"How did you get _that_ in _here_?" he asked incredulously as he began to follow her orders with stunted motion.

Aria was screaming. Shrill. _Super_ shrill.

"Be quiet!" Skye shouted. She wasn't trying to be harsh, but it sort of slipped out with the annoyance of the sound. Plus she… really did need the chick to be quiet. Which didn't appear to be happening anytime soon. She glared at Hudson. "Tell her to be quiet."

"I-it's fine. The walls are soundproof."

"Right," Skye said, knowing instantly it wasn't a lie. They'd researched the space. Still. "Aria, calm down. Go stand next to your dad. Everything will be fine as long as he does exactly as I say," Skye growled out threateningly.

She felt a little bad as the girl trudged fearfully over to her father. She was vapid and obnoxious, but she'd done nothing wrong. Her dad was a murderer and a thief, but that wasn't her fault.

(Skye knew a little something about that. Guilt was starting to build up in her.)

"Give me access to the computer. I can take care of the rest and everything will be just fine."

"Who _are_ you?" Hudson asked. Aria trembled beneath him as he held her in his arms, her head near buried into his chest. Skye's face softened.

"SHIELD. You know, those people you refused to deal with in the past."

"You're terrorists!"

"Yeah well, we also contacted you as the CIA and you found loopholes to slip away from us then, too. Don't want anyone looking into your _business._ "

"I-I'm sorry."

"Just open your computer!" Skye said, training the gun on them. She really had no intention of using it. The only reason they weren't bringing him in was that they feared, with Hudson's resources, he'd slip away. And Fitz had got a hardwire connection to his office, so they controlled the communications going in and out.

Skye was thankful Coulson and Fitz were being quiet. She was trying to sell this, and Pixar's Inside Out team in her head probably wouldn't be too helpful.

"I can't… do that," he said lamely.

"If you're waiting for the help that should come with that call button you pressed two minutes ago, know that it's not coming. We disabled security."

"Dad…" Aria whimpered, clutching to her father. Even if she hated him –especially just angsty, teenage hate - when someone points a gun at you, it changes things.

Jesus this was horrible.

"It's ok," he offered her and then turned to Skye. "Please, just don't hurt my daughter."

"I promise I won't hurt your daughter," Skye said without thinking. Though it was true, she probably shouldn't have relinquished such information. Almost as to counter the act of compassion, Skye rushed forward and hauled the man up by the collar.

"Dad!"

Skye ignored the girl and shoved him towards the window. Which she promptly shot two holes into.

The wind whistled as it entered the top floor of the building and Skye shoved the man's head outside.

"If the drop doesn't get you, the glass will," she said casually, keeping his chin just above a jagged point. "Unless you just open the computer." She was near pleading.

The man was scrambling to get a grip on Skye's sleeve but still refused to surrender the information. Skye felt nausea take hold. She was taking hostages. She wasn't helping these people. In fact, she was probably traumatizing that girl.

That girl, as it happened, who was suddenly on Skye.

Aria had hopped onto Skye's back, causing her to let go of Hudson and rip her arms behind herself. The abrupt charge surprised Skye, but she kept the gun the teen was frantically trying to gain and managed to throw her to the ground.

She immediately picked herself up, planting her body right in front of her father's.

"Aria!"

"No, dad. This is wrong."

"Aria…" Skye gently started. "You don't understand. Your father has done some terrible things, and all we're asking for is the information so we can fix it. Save _lives."_

"Don't patronize me," the girl spat. "I know what my father is. I know what he does. I don't know the details because they scare me, but I'm aware that he's doing some illegal shit."

"You are?" he asked, completely shocked.

Aria nodded softly to her father before turning back maliciously to a dumbstruck Skye. "But what you're doing is no better. Claiming to be all high and mighty when threatening people without so much as a _conversation_?"

Skye steeled herself, despite this nagging feeling that the girl was right. "Your father would never have listened."

"You were supposed to give him the chance if you claim to be… some good government agency. I thought they revoked SHIELD being terrorists."

A harsh silence filled the air.

 _"_ _Skye, we need the information,"_ Coulson said.

"But they're right…" she whispered.

Hudson tenderly moved Aria out of the way, stepping before her. "I'm just doing this for my daughter."

"Yeah?" Skye asked, peeved again. "Tell that to the money trail we found going back twenty-four years."

"I've done… terrible things, I know. I was in it at first but now I would love nothing more than to fix them. I just can't or…" His eyes drifted to Aria.

 _"_ _They're threatening his daughter."_

"Yeah, thanks Fitz," said Skye, one hundred percent aware of that already. "Sir?"

The two in front of her were only slightly concerned when Skye spoke to the air now, knowing that she was on coms but still making them nervous nonetheless.

 _"_ _Cut them a deal,"_ said Coulson. _"We can help."_

Skye explained if they opened the computer for her, SHIELD could make it appear as though they got the information some other way.

"I… I can't risk it," Hudson told her.

 _"_ _He needs to."_

"You need to," Skye parroted Coulson. "People will die."

Hudson shook his head and pulled his daughter close, whispering something. Most likely reassurances that lacked the facts to support them.

Skye heard Coulson sigh in her ear. _"Skye… you know what you have to do."_

She scowled. "His daughter's here Coulson," she hissed.

 _"_ _You can keep trying to have him help us, but you can't leave that office without the information."_

She stared at the cowering people before her. He was just trying to protect his daughter.

Skye knew two men that had killed for her. Father figures.

She couldn't do that.

"I can personally promise Aria will be safe," Skye said.

"Can you?" Hudson asked skeptically.

"Yes. And I'm not going to lie. If you say no, I'm going to walk out of here. I will not hurt either of you."

 _"_ _Skye!"_ shrieked Fitz.

 _"_ _You're losing your leverage_ ," Coulson scolded harshly. He wasn't happy. _"Even if it is true."_

She ignored him. "Because SHIELD doesn't hurt innocents, we protect them. There's no way we would do any less for your daughter."

Hudson and Aria shared a glance. The girl was smarter than the image she gave off, Skye was sure. Her dad had no idea.

A little egotistically, Skye felt that she and Aria were very similar.

Hudson stood, helping Aria up along the way and went to face Skye.

* * *

"That was a risky move, Skye," Coulson chided.

She ruffled through some papers in a pile on his desk and shrugged, avoiding his eyes. "It panned out."

"But if it hadn't, I'm fairly certain you really would have walked out of there without the information."

Skye nodded, slightly abashed. "You'd be right."

"You can't do that," Coulson said. "If that's the case, I can't send you in on these missions anymore."

"Hey, I got it done," she defended firmly.

"Because of pure luck. That won't always be around."

"Well maybe next time our mark's daughter won't be around!" she exclaimed, slightly louder than she would have preferred.

"So that _is_ what this is about," Coulson said, standing up from behind his desk as Skye remained sitting, now feeling very small.

"Of course it is," she said softly. "I can do… _those_ things to bad people. If it's for the greater good, or I- I just mean I'll do my duty." She looked up at him. "But not to kids."

"We would have never touched her. You know that."

"She didn't know that. _They_ didn't know that, and the way I acted… sure as hell seemed like I would."

"We needed access to that computer. A couple people being scared-"

"Terrorized," Skye grumbled. Coulson raised a brow at the interruption. "And… it was her dad. Coulson you saw, she acted like she hated him but when it came down to it, she loved him. Despite everything else, everything she knew and was aware he was hiding from her. She couldn't see him hurt. I don't care how horrible of a man he is, a murderer… I couldn't do it in front of that girl."

Coulson knelt down to get on his agent's level, it quickly becoming apparent that she was getting emotional. "This isn't just about them. Am I right?"

Skye nodded, lips pursed. Like a child. God, she was _such_ a child!

"My father doesn't even know I'm his daughter anymore," she said as though it were an admission, knowing Coulson was well aware of the fact. "It was all he wanted after twenty-five years of searching and manipulation, but when he finds me he doesn't even get to be aware of it?"

Coulson smiled sadly at her. "He's happy."

"I know," she said, her voice tinged with something like disappointment. "I just wish…"

"That you could be happy with him?" guessed Coulson.

"Yes," Skye said. "I mean, no… I'm happy. I _am_ happy. We've got the Caterpillars going, Simmons is out of that rock, you're… adjusting." Skye eyed his arm in gesture. "I just wonder if it's because of you."

Coulson blinked. "What?"

"You gave me a chance. You're the first father figure I ever had. And it's like… it's just not fair to Cal. I get you, and he gets… what, dogs? He had his wife ripped away, demented, killed, his daughter-"

"He doesn't have a daughter, Skye."

Tear glazed eyes shot up.

She choked on a sob.

 _Child. Child. Child,_ she chastised herself.

She felt even more like a child when Coulson wrapped her up in a hug, the man she just made the admission of being like a daughter to. Little baby Skye… At the moment, she didn't really care though. She returned the embrace.

"You're not replacing him, I promise," Coulson told her. "To him, _none_ of those bad things happened. He has the gift of naivety." He held her out at arm's length to take in her face, though she determinedly looked at her shoes. She hated crying in front of others. " _You're_ the one who lost a father. And… a mother. Even if it was just the idea of one."

"At least I have you," Skye muttered, probably over sharing. Her cheeks lit up.

"Eh, I'm more like the cool uncle. Only cool uncles would have a ride like Lola, right?"

Skye huffed a watery and nervous chuckle, wondering if he really didn't like her thinking of him in a paternal way or if he was kidding. Either way, she decided she wouldn't refer to him in such a way again.

"You know, when Gonzales said that I think of you like a daughter, it was the first time I ever actually realized it. Which was _crazy_ , because it was practically staring me in the face."

" _Gonzales_ said that?" asked Skye, a couple steps behind.

"I think it was more apparent to others than us," he laughed. "I care about every single one of my agents. Consider them all my kids, in some ways. It's just that with you, it turned out to be in _every_ way."

Ok, Skye had the waterworks turned up to ten now. Cal had called her better than perfect, and now this?

She wasn't perfect. She knew these things weren't entirely true, but _they_ certainly seemed to think so.

Because they loved her.

That's what dads were. That strong person who would do anything for you, think you're perfect and believe you'll always make the right decision even as they steer you in the direction they think you should go, because they're worried for you. They think about you and hope your dreams come true. They want you to never cry, they itch for you to be rich. They want magnificent things they're aware can't be true for anyone in life, but they still try to protect you from harsh realities anyway.

And sometimes, they want to be your friend.

"Hello," she said.

Cal turned around. Startled.

"Hell _o_ ," he said, holding out the 'o' extra long as he appraised her curiously. "Do I… know you?"

"We've met, once before," Skye said. It _was_ very deja-vu like, considering they were just outside his new office once again. She seemed to have caught him on the way to work. "It was when you were just starting your business here. You said a house is not a home-"

"Without a pet! And I mean it," he said with a wink. Then his eyes lit up. That big excited beam that made Skye have to stifle a smile at the fond memories of his exuberance. "You're Daisy!" he exclaimed, with an overdramatic gesture of a point.

She could have cried. "You remembered."

"I really like the name," he said approvingly. "Sorry, was knowing that creepy? I'm not usually creepy, I promise. Though I suppose I do spend more time with animals than people…"

Skye laughed lightly. "No, not creepy at all. And animals are sometimes better company than people."

"Very true. Anyway, is there something I can help you with? I see you don't have anything furry with you…"

"I don't have a pet, actually."

"Oh well, come back Saturday! We have adoptions every week."

"I… actually came to speak with you."

"Me?" He pointed to his chest, as though there were some other 'me' around he had to differentiate from. "Of course! Do you have questions, concerns…?"

"No I… I actually go to the University of California, journalism major..." she said, simpering. "I was wondering if I could interview you for an article on your new business."

"Oh. Oh sure! Well I mean, not right now I have to go in-"

"No, I know!"

"But another time!"

"Maybe we could-"

"We should set something up! Yes!"

It was a bustle of over eagerness to please. Cal's hands were gesturing wildly the whole time.

"What about Sunday. You like brunch?"

Skye shrugged her shoulders. "Of course."

"If you think I'm special enough to write your article on, I'll be buying."

"Oh no, I'll-"

He held up a hand to stop her. "I insist."

Skye nodded. "Alright. But _I_ insist on getting us pastries afterward."

"Oooh, I'll hold you to that. I love pastries."

"I had a hunch," Skye said, blithely shrugging.

He looked at a watch on his wrist. "Ah, you'll have to excuse me. I have a nine o'clock."

"Ok, um… Sunday at eleven? Meet here?"

He shot his thumbs up. Like the Fonz, or something. "Sunday at eleven. See you then."

"See you," she near whispered, her fingers trailing off in a wave. Skye turned with a sigh as Cal, or… _Dr. Winslow_ went inside and walked to her SUV.

"I know why you're doing this."

Skye could have screamed. "Fitz! When the hell did you get in there?"

"Oh, whole time," he said, casually playing with some sort of… doohickey. Ok, Skye didn't know what it was. He was getting so confident with himself lately, she reflected as he threw the object nonchalantly. "I snuck in the back before you left. And you call yourself a field agent…"

"Why?" Skye asked, ignoring the dig.

"I wanted to tell you that I figured you out."

Skye shook her head. " _What_ are you talking about?"

"I know why you're doing this," he repeated.

She crossed her arms. "Okay. Please, enlighten me," she said, gesturing in front of her.

"Because Sunday is Father's Day."

Skye flushed. "It's not that…"

"I understand it, Skye. You want a relationship with your dad and Coulson. That incident with the girl coupled with the upcoming holiday made it overwhelming."

Skye dropped down in the driver's seat. Fitz was next to her, feet lazily propped up on the dash.

"It's just… this is the first time I've actually come up on a Father's Day while I've, you know, _had_ a dad. And he doesn't know me. Then I've got this other guy who could fill his shoes and I feel like I should… do something for him? Ugh." Skye buried her face in her palms. "It's so ridiculous."

"It's not ridiculous. I think of Coulson that way as well."

"You do?"

"Sure. We're obviously not as… _tight_ as you two, but I never had a dad." He looked down, his zesty attitude fading. "He's the first man to ever really believe in me. Mum was great, but…"

"You don't have to explain, I get it," Skye said. "Well, not the good mom part. My mom pretty much sucked."

"Yeah, agreed," he said. "What I'm getting at is dads are important. And Father's Day… just really gives you the chance to think about and realize that."

"I guess you're right," Skye said, only now realizing how true his words really were. She cocked a brow at him. "When did you get so wise?"

"Oh, ya know. When the files in my brain started connecting back up."

Skye shook her head. "I honestly don't ever think I've seen Leo Fitz have so much wisdom within him. You've always been _pretty_ clueless…" she mocked playfully.

"Hey!" he said in offense, prompting Skye to laugh. "Well, I don't think I could imagine having a worse sister if I tried."

Skye nodded approvingly. "That's fair. But we agree on one thing: our dad's the best."

"Yep. We're lucky kids."

Skye sort of wished Coulson could hear her conversation, but he'd think they were just saying it. Even despite their heart to heart. He'd never believe _just_ how truly amazing they knew he was.

Protector, guardian, motivator, helper. That's what he was to them.

Maybe, just to make it official, she'd get him a Father's Day card.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Thaaaaank you Shadow375 for the beta!

So, this is a father's day gift for, you guessed it, my father! My dad's never actually read any of my work, so please don't be shy on critique as I'd like to make it perfect before I give it to him. I chose a Skye story for obvious reasons (dad issues as well as such awesome complex relationships with her father figures) and threw Fitz in there just for kicks.

The one day my father did find my fanfiction page he spent over an hour just reading my reviews, so clearly he enjoys seeing when people like my stuff. Therefore, I'm asking as a little special treat to my pop, if you could leave as many reviews as possible! I will be print them out for him along with the story on Sunday if there's a good few. (It's a weird request, I know, but my dad can be strange.)

Thanks guys! Hope you enjoyed.


End file.
